Fraxinus pennsylvanica (Green ash)

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Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marshall

Green ash, red ash, downy ash, swamp ash, water ash

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Oleaceae	Temperate climate shrubs, trees and a few vines, include forsythia, ash, jasmine, privet, olive, lilac, and many others
Genus	Fraxinus	The classical Latin name for ash
Species	pennsylvanica	“Of or from Pennsylvania”

About plant names...

Green ash is native to eastern and central North America. Bottomlands, floodplains, riverbanks, wetlands.

Plants: 39-82′ (12-25 m) tall, with a trunk up to 2′ (60 cm) in diameter. Smooth gray bark in young trees gives way to fissured bark in older trees.

Leaves: Opposite, 1-2½′ (38-76 cm) long. Each leaf is odd pinnate, comprised of 5-9 leaflets. Each leaflet is 1¾-6″ long ⨉ ⅜-3½″ wide (5-15 ⨉ 1.2-9 cm). Leaves are dark green both above and below. They turn yellow in the fall.

Flowers: Inconspicuous purplish flower panicles appear on leaf tips. Each flower lacks petals. They appear from April to May, after the foliage.

Fruits: Dense, drooping clusters of samaras. Each samara is 1-3″ long ⨉ ¼-5/16″ wide (2.5-7.6 cm ⨉ 6.3-8.5 mm), light green, and contains a single seed.

These are closely similar:

6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington, DC · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm)

6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington, DC · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm)

	*Fraxinus americana*	You are here Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Common Name	white ash	green ash
Plant	Up to 131′ (40 m). Bark is light gray, and distinctively fissured.	39-82′ (12-25 m) tall, with a trunk up to 2′ (60 cm) in diameter. Smooth gray bark in young trees gives way to fissured bark in older trees.
Flowers	Trees are mostly dioecious—male and female flowers appear on separate trees. Clusters of small flowers appear on branch tips. Both male and female flowers are purple, and lack petals. Flowers appear from April to May.	Inconspicuous purplish flower panicles appear on leaf tips. Each flower lacks petals. They appear from April to May, *after the foliage*.
Leaves	Compound, 8-15″ (20-38 cm), odd pinnate, comprised of 5-9 leaflets (usually 7). Leaflets are 3-5″ (7.6-12 cm) long, oval to somewhere between oblong and lanceolate. *Leaf undersides are whitish, much paler than the leaf tops. Leaves turn yellow or red in the fall. Twigs have C-shaped leaf scars*.	Opposite, 1-2½′ (38-76 cm) long. Each leaf is odd pinnate, comprised of 5-9 leaflets. Each leaflet is 1¾-6″ long ⨉ ⅜-3½″ wide (5-15 ⨉ 1.2-9 cm). Leaves are dark green *both above and below*. They turn yellow in the fall.
Fruit	Drooping clusters of winged samaras, each up to 2″ (5 cm) long.	Dense, drooping clusters of samaras. Each samara is 1-3″ long ⨉ ¼-5/16″ wide (2.5-7.6 cm ⨉ 6.3-8.5 mm), light green, and contains a single seed.
Range/ Zones	USDA Zones: 3-9	USDA Zones: 3-9
Habitats	Rich moist (but not soggy) deciduous and mixed forests.	*Bottomlands, floodplains, riverbanks, wetlands.*
Type	Wild	Wild